Rangers: Prelude to Crisis
by D Piddly
Summary: Prelude to Crisis on Alternate Earths. Peter Parker has been chosen to lead a team of multiple Lanterns to save the universes. Too bad they can't all work together.


This is part of the Prelude to Crisis on Alternate Earths, a crossover event that I am still working on. This will lead into it. It's partly meant to be fun, partly because I need to practice on writing team dynamics. So bear with me!

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Marvel, DC, yada yada yada...

* * *

**CHAPTER 1**

"Welcome to the Rangers."

The words felt odd as they left Peter's mouth. Only a month ago, he had been Spider-Man. Shortly after, he had lost his spider powers… permanently. The arachnid venom was forever wiped out of his DNA. He was just getting used to civilian life when a being called The Watcher magically appeared out of the sky saying he had been called to serve as a Green Lantern in an alternate universe.

Which is why he was here, now, talking to the ten-year-old boy in front of him, clad in a yellow and black suit with a yellow cape.

The boy stared at the yellow ring on his finger.

"The voice said I was chosen because I can inspire great fear," he said, his voice controlled. "No one's afraid of Robin."

"That's okay," Peter said, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Because where we're going, we don't need fear. Yet. I mean, it'll be useful, I guess, sometimes, but-,"

"You're making a fool of yourself, Parker," came the gravelly voice of Drax, often known as the Destroyer, behind him. "Again."

Peter shot him a grimace before turning back to Robin. Damian Wayne was still dejected, which was to be expected, as his father, Batman, had died in battle a few days previously. Reluctantly, he walked forward, brushing past Peter, and sitting down on a crate next to Jean Grey.

"All righty!" Peter said, looking around at the assembled group that was sitting on various objects in the space ship's cargohold. "Is now a good time to mention we don't actually own this freighter?"

All six faces looked up at him in shock. All except for Jean's, who already knew from her telepathic abilities.

"Yep!" Peter went on cheerfully. "Am I the best leader ever, or what?"

Everyone was silent for a moment before Wadey Wilson mumbled "or what."

This didn't discourage Peter. They still had a ways to go before they trusted him. But that was okay. That was what this first mission was about.

The Watcher had told Peter that a group of beings called the Lantern Corps needed him to spearhead a special mission they were undertaking. There were seven different corps, and very few of them got along. The Green Lanterns had come up with a project called the Unity Team, with one representative from each Corps working together in a team. Once Peter had accepted the mission and become a Green Lantern, he renamed the team "the Rangers," mostly because of the colorful aspect of the project.

There were two main universes involved, with billions of realities inside of those two universes. U1 and U2 they were designated, and upon finding out he was from U2, he went to the first universe in search of teammates.

The first being he found was an alien princess held in bondage in space. Using his newfound abilities granted him by the Green Power Ring, he had freed her, and she had accepted his offer to join. She was the beautiful and buxom Koriand'r of Tamarran, often referred to as Starfire by the group. She wielded the Purple Ring of the Star Sapphire Corps, the "love monkeys" as so eloquently referred to by fellow Green Lantern John Stewart. Bright, lovely, and cheerful, Kory has seemed to put her dark past behind her in search of a better future.

Next he found Zatanna Zatara on a different reality in U1. A curvy, sarcastic magician with a penchant for getting into trouble, Peter realized her outer demeanor masked a deeper compassion, leading him to give her the Indigo Ring of the Indigo Tribe. Despite the space suit the ring had provided her, she still wore her magician's jacket and top hat over it, and opted to leave her legs covered in the fishnet stockings she had worn when they first met. Which Peter found no issue with at all.

Deciding to return to U2, the three of them were instantly forced to fight for their lives against a crazed Drax the Destroyer. His family had been killed by the Mad Titan Thanos, and his rage burned hot inside and outside him. Peter had seen an alternate reality where Drax had successfully joined a team of intergalactic Guardians of the Galaxy, so he pitched the idea of the Red Ring to him, leading him to become the Red Lantern. His alien species was a very literal minded one, and Peter had to be really careful about certain Earth euphemisms.

Finding a user for the Orange Ring proved tricky. They had to find a being who was greedy beyond all hope, but who could still function in a team. Peter thought about Wade Wilson, better known as Deadpool, but this idea was almost lost when they traveled from reality to reality, finding a dead Wilson after dead Wilson. They realized that Deadpool was caught up in a metacidal war, but they managed to save the life of Wadey Wilson, the child version, from an explosion. Kidpool instantly proved to be the perfect user for the Orange Lanterns, who were satisfied with the pick.

The Blue Lanterns had already chosen a host. Jean Grey, but a version of her that had remained untouched by the Phoenix Force. That was a difficult assignment, but Peter had managed to track one version down, who turned out to be so full of hope the Blue Ring glowed even when not on her finger. Many versions of her had her name a daughter with this ideal.

They returned to U1, to find a version of Damian Wayne mourning the loss of his father, Bruce. In most realities, it was Damian himself who was killed, but they figured the kid was a better pick for the fear-inducing Yellow Lantern. He was.

Now they were huddled in the cargobay of a pirate space ship, which was a situation that Peter never expected to find himself, even as Spider-Man. But this whole past week had been so surreal, that at this point, he just went with it.

"I thought you said we were going to get a ship that could jump between the universes and the realities so it wouldn't be that big a burden on our Power Rings?" Zatanna said, rolling some random indigo colored magic in her fingers. "How is this ship like that?"

"Piracy these days," Peter said. "They be trippin.'"

"Do they have the capability to travel between realities?" Starfire asked.

"Good question," Peter replied. "Uh, not yet, but I'm hoping to take it to the Watcher and have him take a look…"

"Couldn't we just get a ship from the Watcher?" Kidpool asked.

"We could, but technically, our first mission is to get a ship on our own," Peter admitted. "Doesn't matter what kind. They'll fix it up."

Silence.

"Come on, it'll be fun!" Peter said, looking around at the stony faces.

"This isn't a plan," Drax growled. "It's idiocy."

"It's not much of a test," Jean added. "I mean, get a ship? Could they be more vague?"

"I think they just want to see if we don't kill each other right off the bat," Zatanna mused. "Speaking of, how did we get here, anyway?"

"Zeta tube," Peter answered. "Look, guys, I know it's not ideal, but let's just take care of this before we're all found and killed by pirates, huh?"

There was no answer to this. Finally, Kidpool slid off his rear, stretching.

"Fine," he said, bored. "But only because the other kid started without us."

"Great!" Peter exclaimed, then realized what he said. "Wait, what? Where's Damian?"

* * *

The pirates had started to think they were going out of their minds. One by one, their crew members were disappearing. Until finally, six brightly colored individuals came out of nowhere, attacking them with energy weapons.

"Stay close, Rangers!" Peter yelled. "We still don't know what we can do, so let's-,"

"STAY OUT OF MY WAY!" Drax roared, creating a massive red axe from his Power Ring, swinging it with abandon.

"Or that," Peter said. "Zatanna, you and Starfire head to the bridge, try to take it over, or something. Jean, you and Kidpool find Damian! He's around here somewhere."

Kidpool swung his orange lightsabers through several pirates, slicing them apart easily. Jean through her hands out, pushing five of them back with her telekinesis.

Peter channeled his Power Ring's energy into himself, enhancing his strength and speed, replicating some of his spider powers. If something worked, he saw no point in changing it. He leapt over the heads of some of the thugs, slamming them to the ground. He was proud to see that even after a month of civilian life, he still had the moves.

Then a large red arm came out of nowhere and slammed into his face. He fell back, dazed.

"I said," Drax growled, still swinging his axe, "stay out of my way!"

"Sorry," Peter groaned, clutching his head. "Silly me."

"Uh, Peter?"

Jean was pointing at a corner of the bay, where a small yellow light was glowing. It suddenly exploded in a massive black tinged assault, and every enemy combatant fell to the ground, dazed. Damian stepped out of the shadows.

"Fools," he said, cracking his knuckles. "I am the night."

"Jeez," Peter mumbled, standing up. Drax was breathing heavily, the bloodlust still in his eyes. Kidpool walked over to Robin and slapped him on the back.

"Nice job, bird-brain!" he said appreciatively. Damian gave him a scathing look, but Wadey ignored it. Peter glanced to the direction of the bridge.

"Let's join the other ladies," he said.

* * *

"Do you know how to fly this thing?"

"It's a space ship, how hard can it be?" Peter replied tersely, pressing some buttons. A warning klaxons came on. Kory had the pirate captain at knife-point, her purple blade protruding from her fist.

"You bastards!" he bellowed. "You stow away on my ship, slaughter my crew, and now you're going to sink my bloody ship!"

"Dude, chill," Kidpool said. "I so got this."

He walked up to the control console, pulling some levers. A warning voice came over the speakers, saying _"abandon ship, abandon ship.."_

"Oh my god," Zatanna moaned, burying her face in her hand. "We suck. No, actually, I don't suck. Kory doesn't suck. We took the bridge. You guys? You suck."

"Who wiped out the pirate crew single-handed?" Damian asked roughly.

"Had help with that," Kidpool muttered.

"Can we not?" Peter asked loudly. "Thank you." He turned his attention to the console. Strictly speaking, he had a genius-level I.Q., but that mind was geared more toward biology than mechanics. After a few more minutes of trying random buttons, he turned to the rest.

"Brace for impact," he said casually.

* * *

On the nearly deserted moon of Id, the Watcher gazed at the wreckage before him. His eyes, which had seen so much, were narrowed in judgment. Bodies were strewn about the destroyed freighter, and seven different representatives from the Lantern Corps were picking themselves out of it, some holding their heads, or arms. The Green Lantern climbed to the top of the pile, raising his arms triumphantly, his lip bleeding.

"Are we the greatest team in the universe?!" he asked, grinning. There was dead silence.

"Or what," muttered the Orange Lantern.


End file.
